


By Your Hand

by Cryptidneet



Category: Friends (TV)
Genre: Angst, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-27
Updated: 2018-03-12
Packaged: 2019-03-24 15:13:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13813818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cryptidneet/pseuds/Cryptidneet
Summary: No relationship is perfect, especially not Chandler and Joey's. This is series of one-shots about the low moments, the fights and the breakups during their relationship.They'll be happy endings, angst, humor and whatever else I decide to throw in here.





	1. The One With The Secret

**Author's Note:**

> New story!!!  
> This is a collection of one-shots about how Joey and Chandler deal with bad times in their relationship. Some of them are going to have happy endings, some of them won't. 
> 
> They aren't gonna be in chronological order and some will be longer then others. 
> 
> This first one isn't too long and it's pretty light!

* * *

 

“We can’t keep this up forever.”

Joey squeezes his eyes shut and deflates into a sigh as Chandler starts up the age old argument of ‘when are we telling our friends we’re dating’.

“I’m just not ready,” Joey tries, but Chandler frowns with thin lips.

“How much time do you need? We have to let them know sometime!” He snaps, and Joey can tell his patience is running thin. “Why don’t you want them to know about us? Are you embarrassed of me?”

“No—No, of course not!” Joey moves to loop an arm over Chandler’s shoulder. “It’s just… I have an image to maintain.”

In a list of things that are okay to say in this situation, that would be at the bottom. In fact, it’s so not an okay thing to say that it isn’t even on the list.

Chandler’s face contorts to some sort of mix between insulted and disgusted.

“An image to maintain? Oh my god, you _are_ embarrassed of me!” Chandler hisses, shoving Joey away from him and standing up. “I can’t believe this! You wont tell our friends that we’re dating because I’ll ruin your image!”

“Chandler— that’s not what I meant!”

“Oh, _excuuuse_ me!” He draws out. “Why don’t you explain what you meant by that then.”

Joey fumbles around his words for a solid 6 seconds before Chandler mutters an ‘unbelievable’ and storms into his room.

“Chandler, you didn’t let me finish! You didn’t even let me start!” Joey cries, as the door slams shut with a harsh _bang._

* * *

 

It’s after midnight when Chandler’s door opens again. Joey’s still sitting in the same spot from earlier with his head hanging low and his face buried in his hands.

It takes a minute for him to register that Chandler has left his room but when he does, he shoots to his feet and takes a couple cautious steps forward.

“Chandler—” He starts but his boyfriend only shakes his head, wearing that same disgusted look from before.

“The only reason I’m out here is because I’m hungry and I have to pee,” Chandler says pointedly, refusing to look at Joey. “I’m still mad at you.”

“I know,” Joey says, taking a few more steps towards his boyfriend. “You have a right to be mad, I was an asshole and I’m sorry.”

They stand in silence for a while before Chandler finally makes eye contact.

“Do you know why I’m mad?” He asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Because I said I have an image to maintain?” Joey tries. He’s never been good at this kind of thing.

“That’s only part of it. Keep going”

“And—And I don’t want to tell our friends?” He feels like a fish out of water, just flailing uselessly. Chandler sighs with entire body before moving to close the gap between them.

“Why can’t we tell them, Joe? They’re our best friends, I can guarantee you they’ll support us.” Chandler lowers his voice and carefully takes one of Joey’s hands. He rubs small circles with his thumb and Joey takes his time to answer.

“I guess I’m not… ready to share this? It’s fun like this.” He says finally. “It’s like I have you all to myself!”

“You’ll still have me all to yourself,” Chandler’s voice is so soft that Joey has to lean forward to hear him. “We won’t have to hide ourselves anymore if we just tell them.”

“I guess you might be right,” Joey whispers back, only inches away from Chandler’s face. “But what if—“

Chandler cuts him off with a brief kiss that leaves him longing for more.

“Tomorrow,” He whispers against Joey’s lips. “We’ll tell them tomorrow.”

But Joey still hesitates and he knows that Chandler sees his apprehension because he pulls back and the frustration is back.

“What?” He demands, his tone returning to a normal (if slightly too loud) volume. “You _still_ don’t want to tell them?”

“It’s not that!” Joey knows he’s digging himself deeper into this hole but he can’t stop. “I’m not ready!”

“How can you _not_ be ready!” Chandler’s voice is raising in octaves and throwing his hands frustratedly into the air. “We’ve been dating for almost 6 months, Joe. _6 months!”_

“I know—“

“I’m so fucking _tired_ of all this lying and hiding!” Chandler’s nearly yelling by now and Joey’s terrified the girls are going to hear him. “How shallow can you be?”

“How does this make me shallow?” Now it’s Joey’s turn to get mad.

“You said it earlier! You’re embarrassed to be dating me!” Chandler’s full on shouting now.

“I _never_ said that!” Joey yells back, balling his hands into fists at his side. “I just said I wasn’t ready!”

“You’ve had 6 months to get ready,” Chandler’s voice is suddenly much softer. “I’m done waiting.”

_Wait_.

“Wait,” Blood rushes in Joey’s ears and it’s so loud it’s almost deafening. “What do you mean?”

“If you don’t want to tell them then we’re done.”

_Done_?

“Done?”

“Yes Joey. Done,” Chandler’s tone is final and Joey suddenly feels like he’s drowning. “I’m done playing this game. We either tell them or we break up. Your choice.”

Without another word, Joey crosses the expanse of their apartment and swings the door open, much to Chandler’s apparent surprise.

“Joey— Where are you—“

“Are you coming?” He throws over his shoulder as he stalks over to apartment 20 and smacks his hand repeatedly (and loudly) on the door.

“What the hell are you doing!” Chandler yelps, stumbling to Joey’s side.

“I’m making my choice,” He says as the door swings open to reveal a very, very pissed off looking Rachel and an equally tired looking Monica.

“What the hell is this about?” Rachel demands while Monica sleepily looks at a clock out of their point of view.

“Joey, what’s going on?,” Monica mumbles, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. “It’s 1 in the morning.”

“I know,” Joey says, his face set in determination. “I have something important to tell you.”

“Joe—“ Chandler starts but Joey cuts him off by firmly pressing their lips together.

Chandler’s anger seems to dissolve as he melts into the kiss and breaths a quiet moan into Joey’s mouth.

They break apart and Chandler stumbles into Joey’s arms, his face flushed.

“We’re dating,” Joey says firmly, turning to face the girls while keeping one arm wrapped around Chandler’s waist. “We’ve been dating for 6 months.”

Rachel and Monica stare wordlessly at them.

“Congrats,” Monica says softly while Rachel smiles grimly.

“Congrats, you guys are so _cute_!” Rachel’s voice is so sweetly positive that it almost sounds fake. “We totally wanna hear all the details but how about we wait until the morning! Some of us have to wake up early for _their jobs!”_

And the door is promptly slammed in their faces.

"I'm sure she'll be more excited in the morning," Joey mumbles, turning to his boyfriend. "Was that okay?" 

“Yeah, you made the right choice,” Chandler laughs, pressing his body close and running his fingers through Joey's hair. “And good kiss too, real convincing!”

“That one was only a teaser,” Joey grins, biting Chandler’s lip teasingly. “I got more where that came from.”

“Please,” Chandler whines desperately before smashing his lips against Joey’s with heated passion.

They break apart and Joey gazes into Chandler’s eyes before giving him a softer kiss.

“Thank you for doing this,” Chandler whispers. “I’m sorry if I was harsh earlier.”

“Don’t be, you were right.”

“I’ll never get tired of hearing those words,” Chandler says with a laugh, leaning back so they can meet each other’s eyes. “What about Ross and Phoebe?”

“We’ll tell them tomorrow,” Joey smiles as their lips meet again. “No more secrets…”

“Good.”

…

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

…

“What did you mean about maintaining your image?”

* * *

 


	2. The One Where Chandler Leaves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chandler leaves on a business trip and muses about his and Joey's relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i actually hate myself for starting a series of one-shots and then immediately getting writers block after writing the first one :(  
> I have like, one other idea for this and then like  
> nothing. no more ideas. feed me prompts bc i can't come up with anything.

“Do you have to leave?” Joey whines, crossing his legs on the bed and watching Chandler pack.

“You know I do,” Chandler says softly, urging his boyfriend to understand. “It’s only for two weeks.”

“Two weeks is a long time.”

“I know,” Chandler sighs, placing a neatly folded shirt into the suitcase. “I don’t want to go either but I have to.”

“No you don’t,” Joey says, leaning forward on the bed.

“Yes, I do. I’ll lose my job if I don’t do this,” This isn’t the first time they’ve had this conversation this week and it always seems to end the same way. Joey begs him to stay but Chandler still has to leave and neither of them are happy about it.

“Then quit!” Joey exclaims, giving Chandler his best puppy-dog eyes.

“I can’t do that,” Chandler’s still speaking in that quiet tone. “We have bills to pay, Joe.”

“I can get a real job and then you won’t have to go on stupid business trips!” Chandler recognizes that Joey’s becoming increasingly distraught by this situation but still, nothing changes.

“Joey, it’s only for two weeks—And I’ll call everyday.”

“It’s not the same,” Joey briefly considers shoving the suitcase off the bed and letting all the clothes fall to a crumpled heap on the floor but he doesn’t because he knows it'll only put Chandler in a bad mood and he'll still have to leave anyway.

“I know.”

…

“When do you have to leave?”

“In about an hour,” Chandler says, glancing over at Joey. He pouts and falls backwards onto the bed, kicking his feet up in the air.

“I don’t want you to go,” He mutters. The bed dips as Chandler comes around to the side to sit next to him.

“I don’t want to go either,” He says, leaning over to press a kiss into Joey’s hair.

“Then stay.”

“I would if I could,” He whispers back, pulling his legs onto the bed to lay down next to boyfriend. Silence fills the air and Joey closes his eyes, savoring the feeling of having Chandler lay next to him. He's not going to be able to enjoy this feeling for a while.

“Two weeks is a long time,” Chandler breaks the silence, pressing his face into Joey’s chest. Joey wraps his arms around him and pulls him as close as possible.

“But you’ll call everyday.”

“But you’re right. It won’t be the same,” Chandler’s voice is muffled by the fabric of Joey’s shirt but he doesn’t care. He presses his nose into Chandler’s soft hair and breathes him in. He won’t get to do _this_ for a while either.

“You should come with me. We could get a hotel room together and then I can see you everyday I'm gone.”

“You know I have like three auditions lined up. One of these might be the one.” Chandler huffs and rolls over, separating them, and Joey already missed his warmth.

Joey continues to lay on his back, staring at the ceiling while Chandler stands to finish packing. After a while, he hears the zipper of the suitcase close and he can feel the difference in the bed as Chandler lifts the luggage off the mattress and lays it on the floor.

“How much time?”

“Half an hour.”

…

“You know what we can do twice in half an hour?”

Chandler’s pants are off before he even finishes the sentence.

* * *

 “Joe, I really need to leave now if I wanna make the flight,” Chandler stresses, pulling his pants on.

“If you miss it then do you still have to go?” Joey tries as he sits up, still bare chested. Chandler launches a shirt at his head.

“Good try, but yes, I still have to go,” He says, dragging the suitcase into the living room with Joey close behind. He tugs the shirt on over his head while Chandler checks his pockets for his wallet and keys.

“I’ll call you when I land, okay?” He says, tilting his head to meet Joey’s downcast gaze.

“I guess,” He pouts.

“I’ll miss you, Joe,” Chandler says softly, leaning to press a soft kiss against his boyfriend’s lips. Joey sighs and returns the kiss; it’s needy and desperate but so is Joey so it’s fine.

“I’ll miss you too, Chan,” He mutters against his boyfriend’s lips. He can feel Chandler smile and he wraps his arms around his boyfriend.

“I love you.”

“Love you too.”

And after one last hug, Chandler’s shouldering the door open while calling out last goodbye’s over his shoulder.

The door closes behind him and Joey’s left alone in the apartment for the next two weeks. 

* * *

 As soon as the door closes behind him, Chandler collapses against it with a full body sigh.

He hates this.

He hates the kicked puppy look that Joey gets everytime he walks out that door.

He hates the way Joey begs him to stay everytime and how bad it makes him feel when he leaves anyway.

He hates sleeping alone in an unfamiliar bed without Joey’s arms around him for two long weeks.

He really hates leaving, but they have bills to pay and Joey’s acting gigs just aren't enough to sustain them for long.

He takes a deep breath, grabs the handle of the suitcase and reluctantly drags himself away from apartment 19.

* * *

 Chandler gaze down as New York becomes smaller and smaller from the height of the plane.

Somewhere down there was Joey. Somewhere on the surface was his boyfriend. Somewhere in their shared apartment was the love of his life.

He’s done this tons of times before; travelling for work isn’t a new occurrence for him but everytime he has to leave, it just gets harder and harder.

Shouldn’t these things get easier over time?

Realistically, he knows leaving the only person he’s ever given his heart and soul to will never be easy but he also knows it’s only for a short time.

It’s just a few weeks and then he can fall asleep in the comforting warmth of his boyfriend’s arms.

The seatbelt on light flickers off and everyone around him begins to settle comfortably but Chandler is suddenly so full of nervous energy that he can’t sit still.

The man next to him gives him a dirty look at he shifts for what seems like the hundredth time that hour.

Why is it always him who has to leave?

He also knows this answer; he’s the one with the stable job. Joey doesn’t get roles that often and when he does, they don’t often require him to travel.

This is the price they pay to live comfortably. This is what Chandler is willing to deal with in order to assure a comfortable future with the man he loves.

A future _together_.

The thought would have terrified him a year ago but now it’s all he can think about.

Chandler takes a deep breath and releases it slowly, gazing out the window at the land below him. Everything looks so small from this height and it never ceases to amaze him.

Does Joey ever think about the future? _Their_ future?

Are they going to get married? Buy a house and adopt kids?

Will they have pets other than the chick and the duck?

He feels a giddy sort of excitement blossom in his chest when he thinks about spending the rest of his life with Joey.

The excitement fades and dies as he watches New York become smaller and smaller and he goes further and further away.

He’s never missed Joey as much as he does right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ITS NOT GREAT.... but im FISHING for ideas lmao.  
> i also have a bunch of others stories started that I just need to finish proofreading so i can start posting them! i got a couple long one-shots and then like, 2 or 3 series i wanna start!! i have BIG plans :-)

**Author's Note:**

> That's it for the first chapter! 
> 
> I have a few ideas for the next few chapters but feel free to leave suggestions on some angsty Chanoey I can write :-) 
> 
> Thanks for reading!!!


End file.
